Question on gaming laptops

[Stg-Flame]

I've built quite a few gaming PCs but I've only owned one laptop which wasn't the best for running games. I'm looking to buy a new gaming laptop before mid February and I'd like some advice. It seems the best affordable ones are equipped with a GeForce 660M 2gb and an i7 for around $700 - $900. Are there better ones for about the same price or is there anything in particular I should look for/avoid?

Feel free to toss out some suggestions.

Posting from my phone before work so thanks in advance for any assistance.

 

[Eureka]

Find a Clevo-based laptop (such as Sager). It will give you a lot more options as you can upgrade the parts easily (other brands will lock you in by having solder-on CPUs, and possibly solder-on GPUs).

 

[Stg-Flame]

I don't foresee me ever upgrading any parts in the laptop so I would rather just get a prebuilt gaming laptop.

 

[Eureka]

I don't foresee me ever upgrading any parts in the laptop so I would rather just get a prebuilt gaming laptop.

They are pre-built, if you get Sager or similar ones. Same with MSI and Asus. However, with these laptops you have an option of upgrading if it comes down to it. I also believe Alienware (the larger laptops) use standard MXM format. It also has more resellability as informed buyers will look for them as they can upgrade them later to keep it relevant.

There are also a few that use standard desktop CPUs, so you don't have to worry about finding laptop CPUs later on.

The main thing to go with this is that later on, if you find yourself bottlenecked, you are not locked in.

I think the question comes down to what you actually want to play. If you want to play all the newest games at 1080p, you'd probably want no less than a 675m or a 670mx.

Also to note that if you do get a mobile processor, none of the i5s are quad cores. There are a few games that can utilize the quad core, so i7s are useful.

RAM is usually upgradable and so are hard drives. I wouldn't even worry about those, just get the cheapest option. You'll want a 900p screen at minimum if the laptop is going to be the main display, and the other options are now up to you (weight, looks, display size, etc).

 

[Stg-Flame]

Thanks for the input, but I didn't fully clarify why I want this laptop. My current laptop is from 2007 and was purchased for college. It's 2013 and that laptop can barely run Dawn of War Dark Crusade, not to mention it's just incredibly slow and outdated. What I am looking for is just something to have for when I go on trips out of town - which I go out of town maybe once a month for usually two or three days. However, my job does send me to different states for training purposes for weeks on end and I would enjoy having something that I could play some of my favorite Indie games (Terraria, Bastion, FTL, Magicka, AVWW, etc.) as well as some of the more hardware demanding games like Dawn of War Dark Crusade, Mount and Blade Warband, Skyrim, etc. I'm not looking for a 60FPS 1080p experience here because I have a desktop for that when I come home.

With that being said, I don't plan on this laptop being one I want to upgrade later. My desktop costs enough money to upgrade after a few years and I really don't see the need to keep two gaming devices upgraded when one of them will gather dust for the most part until I go out of town.

From the stock laptops I've seen at Newegg, I wasn't really impressed, but then again, I don't know much about stock gaming laptops other than if I buy an Alienware, I'm spending $1,500 for a name.

 

[Eureka]

That's fine, but there's no such thing as a simple or cheap gaming laptop. I hope you realize this.. you'll be spending around a $1000 even to run games at moderately decent settings.

The Alienware M14x is actually a pretty good choice for your needs. I had one with a i7 and 555m. It would struggle to run newer games like BF3 or Crysis on higher settings. You can find a used one for $600-800, or if you're really lucky, a new one (with i7 and 900p screen) for around $800 (I've done this before, but it requires a lot of luck and timing).

You'd actually be surprised about Alienware, at MSRP they're a bit pricey but if you find the right coupons they offer probably the most flexible packages for gaming laptops.

ASUS and MSI does the same likewise, but quite honestly, Alienware does have the best support out of the three.

White books (Clevo-based laptops) also offer decent solutions. You can find them at Sager's website or XoticPc. They do offer something like this: http://www.xoticpc.com/sager-np6110-clevo-w110er-p-4343.html... 650M 11.6" laptop for around $800.

Now, if you can build a desktop, you can look for a laptop. When it comes down to gaming, the only two things that really matter are the CPU and the GPU. Just realize that a i5 mobile is a dual core, and that the numbering on laptop parts have nothing to do with their desktop counterparts. My 555m would struggle to run BF3, and even had hiccups running Bastion at 1200p! So anything less than a 650M (which is the modern counterpart to the 555M) is pretty miserable to game on. Even if you do get a 650M, don't expect to run any demanding games even at medium settings unless you're playing on a 768p screen.

 

[m.alkhalel]

I would recommand acer v3 571g. It has a quad core intel i7-3630qm (up to 3,4 ghz),nvidia 640m with 2 gb vram and 8 gb ram. It costs around 800-900$ depending on your location. It's certainly not the best gaming laptop out there but its the best horse power for the buck you can get and the best thing is, it isn't as bulky and thick as high-end gaming laptops. It plays all new games like BF3, AC3, Drift3 on Med to high settings. Also you can overclock the gpu with MSI after burner in case you need more power.

 

[frozentundra123456]

I would recommand acer v3 571g. It has a quad core intel i7-3630qm (up to 3,4 ghz),nvidia 640m with 2 gb vram and 8 gb ram. It costs around 800-900$ depending on your location. It's certainly not the best gaming laptop out there but its the best horse power for the buck you can get and the best thing is, it isn't as bulky and thick as high-end gaming laptops. It plays all new games like BF3, AC3, Drift3 on Med to high settings. Also you can overclock the gpu with MSI after burner in case you need more power.

Not so sure the acer is the best power for the buck. Right now you can get a 15.6 in laptop for 799.00 with a GT660m from the Lenovo website (model Y 580). That would be faster than the 640m, and the price is tremendous. It also has a quad core intel cpu. The only weak point is that it is a 768p screen, but the acer you linked probably is too. I am not sure about the model that you mentioned, but in general, I think Lenovo also is a bit higher quality than Acer.

Personally, the only experience I have had with gaming laptops was with an Asus I got for my grandson, and while you have to be careful to not let it overheat, it is almost 3 years old and going strong, which I consider pretty good for a gaming laptop.